The 80 people being recruited by ASB would work in the bank's in-house home loan team. Photo: RNZ / Marika Khabazi
Mortgage advisers are hopeful that an ASB move to hire 80 "home ownership specialists" could reduce the time it takes to process a mortgage application to days, rather than weeks.
The bank said it was on a hiring drive to recruit people as it prepared for a surge in home loan applications.
It said 80 percent of New Zealand homeowners were expected to refix their home loan within the next year.
The 80 people being recruited would work in the bank's in-house home loan team and with the mortgage adviser channel.
Executive general manager of personal banking Adam Boyd said ASB was already seeing a change in customer behaviour, with people starting to fix for longer terms.
"As a result of falling rates, we expect 55 percent of our home loan customers will have locked in rates under six percent by December this year, compared to 40 percent in March 2025."
He said ASB was also simplifying its refinance process so that borrowers coming to the end of their fixed rate term at another bank could receive a decision on moving to an ASB loan quicker and more easily.
For its mortgage adviser-led business, ASB has introduced a system to improve the quality of applications being submitted so they could be processed more quickly.
"We are seeing elevated demand for our home loans. By growing our teams and enhancing our refinance process, we'll be able to turn around applications faster, both for our customers and the mortgage advisers we work with, while continuing to deliver great service," Boyd said.
Chief executive of mortgage advice firm Squirrel David Cunningham said it would be positive for the whole sector because other banks were likely to also add staff, so they did not lose market share to ASB's increased capacity.
He said it was part of the bank's move to get its processing times back to days rather than weeks.
Mortgage advisers have complained that turnaround times have got too long with many banks.
He said it would help improve bank competition if advisers were able to compare offers more easily for their clients.
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